A world-first Australian trial proved, in February this year, that electric vehicles fitted with appropriate technology at the point of charging can detect a disruption in the grid’s electricity supply and send power back into the network.
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The trial, conducted by the Australian National University, was executed when Victoria’s power supply was thrown into chaos in February as toppled transmission towers at Anakie, west of Geelong, cut power to 530,000 homes.
When power supply was thrown into chaos in Victoria, 16 electric vehicles located 520 kilometres away as the crow flies, in Canberra, detected the disruption and within seconds pumped power back into the grid.
The trial tested what is known as vehicle-to-grid technology, in which devices fitted to EVs can detect small variations in the frequency of the grid that could be power supply disruptions hundreds of kilometres away.
Lead researcher on the trial Bjorn Sturmberg, who described electric vehicles as big batteries on wheels, said 105,000 of them could supply the back-up power needed for all of NSW and the ACT.
Governments are also pursuing so-called energy equity reforms to help those who cannot afford efficient appliances, solar panels and electric vehicles to benefit from savings delivered to the electricity market by new technologies.
Source Agencies
